Burma As suspected one of enemy TF sweep waters south of Rangoon. It was lonely CL. LBs and midget subs slow him enug and on morning he stop 90nm south of Rangoon. Sadly he intercept to SC before we send him on bottom

Fighters sweep above enemy troop near Akyab. They found enemy fighters. First time from 3 or 4 months i have seen P-40K in action. 7 enemy planes shutdown, no Japanese loses. Later enemy bombers attack ground troops in Jungle hex. Flak shot down 3 enemy bombers.

North West Australia Subs attack enemy TF and sunk destroyer. I is very active area. Few days earlier i saw there enemy CA TF.

ASW attack near Carnarvon at 47,134

Japanese Ships SS I-16, hits 2

Allied Ships DD Arrow, Torpedo hits 1, heavy damage DD Nepal

Coccos Island Island is now AF 2 Not good. How much Cocos can be build up? I hope not lvl 5 AF From 1 April strategic bombing will be allowed and Palembang will be in range.

I have two aHQ in Palembang one will be transported to Sabang later I am sending all free aviation support units to Sumatra.

Three (currently LB units) are flaying to Sumatra. I will upgrade them to Ki-45. 270 PP for single unit. Madness. but i will have 81 Ki-45. And until allies are going to be able to escort bombers Nick will do job

23 and 25 Air Defense AA Regiments will sail from Japan to Palembang. I hope 36 10cm AA guns will help little. Those are best AA units in game Japan have I will send also 42 Tojo's IIc and 45 A6M5. When George will be available in April then that Zero unit will have priority to upgrade to it.

I am re-basing battleships and cruisers toward Batavia. When CVE TF arrive i will start bombarding Cocos from sea

I was able to keep Cocos from expanding 5 months. It is easy to close port lvl 1 but also it is easy to repair it and now Cocos have AF 2 and 15 fighters on CAP so bombing raids are not passable.

Invasion was newer option 20k enemy troops on atoll. It Is job for Few US Marine Division not for Japan army.

In next game i will remember - capture and fortify Cocos.

I am also reinforcing Christmas Island IO

I will appreciate help here. I am scare that i will need to defend Palembang against 4E in 1943

Cocos is a pain in the arse! I feel your pain! I've done the same mistake in my game against QBall... didn't feel strong enough to assault a fortified atoll like Cocos when the time was proper (by the end of amphib bonus) and let it live... and now i have a level 5 AF right at the door of Palembang.

In my game QBall has already started to use Cocos as a staging base for his 4Es...which are hitting Christmas Island every day... They can reach Palembang, Batavia, Sosarbaja...from there... The only thing you can do is to keep Palembang well defended.

My plan is exactly like yours: place at Palembang several AA units. Get there a some 100 between N1K1s and Nicks and, above all, at least 1 Air HQ and a couple of base forces with the latest Radar available (it's Ta-chi 7 i think). You cannot do more for the moment.

Now it's too late to invade Cocos... but, above all, the real problem is that from there he can see all your movements in Sumatra, Java and around Singapore...so surprise will be difficult to achive anymore in the DEI for us.

We have big problem there. I do not know how Your game but in 40 days Docup will be allowed to Strategic bombing Palembang. He can Fly only with Liberators on extended range without escort but still can do very bad things to me. I hope that i will be able to give enough resistance to slow him down enough to keep Palembang running

We have big problem there. I do not know how Your game but in 40 days Docup will be allowed to Strategic bombing Palembang. He can Fly only with Liberators on extended range without escort but still can do very bad things to me. I hope that i will be able to give enough resistance to slow him down enough to keep Palembang running

"My" Cocos is already a level 5 AF and his liberators CAN strat bomb Palembang. However, without escort, they aren't trying to do that so far. I've placed some 60 Nicks at Palembang and am planning to add some 27 N1K1 (already 20 produced !!!) in the next week. With 90 great 4Es interceptors there, good radars and an air HQ filled with AA guns, i still feel pretty safe.

Cocos won't be able to stage a huge number of 4Es... a level 5 AF is still a limited AF for 4Es... so we have means to counter that. But watch out for the USN threat! Hiding behind Cocos a CV Fleet could sprint in and send some 300 SDB/TBs to bomb your oilfields, so you better start to keep a good reserve of Netties and LBA Kates parked somewhere on the western Coast of Sumatra, with some good search planes doing their duties.

I've moved some training squadrons to Singapore from the Home Island just for this purpose... if the enemy pops up there i wanna have something immediately at hand...and even a half-trained squadron is better than nothing when the enemy CVs arrive

Enemy CM in Tagua hex. I dont think he have mines. He was part of cargo TF that was trying to resupply base but i have sunk xAKL last turn

I am sending more combat planes from Japan and Manchuria. I need some DB in Salomon's and Marshals. TB have problems with those small fast enemy patrol ships.

I am sending two CVL from Marshals to DEI. They will join there with CVE TF that should be enough against enemy CVEs around Cocos. In 5 days British will get CV but with small capacity it is no more that armored CVL. Ryujo avoid TT attack nort of Manus - lucky me

I dont understand how Cocos can be a problem (sorry I didnt read previous pages of your AAR), when he will mass 4-e bombers, you can use simultaneous combination of night air bombing raids and fast naval bombardment that will destroy or damage lots of planes and runway. Cocos Island can became a grave for his precious bombers.

Tagula Island Bombarded by Japanese battleships. After action they safely return to Shorthands and on morning where undetected. It look like recapturing Woodlark close allied eyes for that area. Night Naval bombardment of Tagula Island at 104,137

Soerabaja Liberators attack port. Lucky i have seen last turn that DL of Soerabaja rise to 2/2 last turn and all ships have leave anchor. Only CL and two E have been left because the are in pier-side mode. I have also re base 42 Tojos to base AF. Even CAP was flying Liberators get trough it and score single 500lb bomb hit to cruiser destroying 14cm tower. CL is safe but sys damage is 21. CL need to stay in port for two more days. CAP shot down 2 Liberators

I see another ships sailing this time i thing against Milne Bay. I am sending small SAG to defend beech. Few miles south is see another TF. It look like CV TF, prabably to give air sypport to landing forces. I am sending KB.

I need to defend Milne Bay. I cant suppress tree bases at time.

Marshals I have debut of my FB ion strafing attack Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Ailuk at 138,114

KB sail trough Salomon Sea to on morning end near Milne Bay. One small enemy TF in range but bombers bot launch to attack them. As KB is already at sea he will assist during evacuation on 1/3 of ID from Guadalcanal. Part that will be evacuated will be transported To Milne Bay Numbers of Subs in area is scaring me. I think 30-40 enemy subs is there

I have sweep Terapo. First time in war we have encounter F4U Corsiair.

Salomon's Allies bombing Buna every day. AF is closed from days but they still coming. Today 55 Liberators, I must told Docup that he should send them to Rabaul. 150 Fighters will have at lest something to do.

Another big hole in Japanese Carrier. This time luck abandon CVL Zuiho

Ok, luck not totally abandon Zuiho. Damage is minimal and week or two in Shipyard will be enough

R&D Another N1K1 factory repaired. I am now producing 10 R%D points daily (engine bonus). K1 will enter service at 4/43. I am expecting K2 version on 8/43. I will leave some factories to research K5(to advance it to end of `44) but i planing to use K5 only in Home Islands where i have many lvl 8,9 AFs with big AV support. K2 will be main front line naavy fighter until will be replaced by A7M2 Sam

In next month B6N1 will enter production but i planing to replace it with N2 on on 5/43

Burma This time allies not fly at day but only at night. Also this time my Night CAP fly. They fight well. Nicks manage even to damage two bombers. No damage on ground

And that is as good as you can expect. I think I can count on one hand the number of 4E's I have shot down at night ...

I do not expecting shotting down bombers. Even hitting them is more than i am expecting. I only want night CAP to fly. Having something in air = big reduction of bombing accuracy ant that is what i need.

I am not even building, r%D night fighters i do not think there is big difference between using F, FB or NF. Also those early arriving night fighters are so slow.

I do the same. I always want to be sure whatever I have on NF mission is faster than the bombers incoming. That seems to be a very big part of an interception. As you note, most of the IJ NF's are slow ... slower than B-29's ...

Burma Another night raid. This time Mandalay was target. In total 120 enemy bombers fly. Lucky at lest 40% of them return before arrive over target. 10 Ki-45 scare them so much. On ground i lost 12 Ki-44

Singer MKB arrive to Singer. 4xCVE 2xCVL They will sail toward Cocos to give air support to BB TF.

Cocos Enemy ship in Cocos anchor. I think it is ACM

Koepang I move 70 G4M and G3M to base. They have order to nigh bomb Darwin Port They not only refuse to fly but also on morning 40 enemy bombers decide to plaster Koepang AF. 35+ bombers lost on ground. Lucky o have over 200 bombers in pool

Salomon's 4E close Gasmata. KB in safe anchor

First time in my game experience i saw night naval attack with confirmed hit. Strafing bombers attack Japanese cargo TF near Guadalcanal. Minimal damage to xAK

I only have extra news. I dont know have but when i first time was looking trough map i did not notice that enemy CV TF is on open sea between Bowen and Rockhampton.

If this was happen half year ago i will attack. Today it is to dangerous. Now we have times when Japanese CV waiting for enemy under LBA support not opposite.

Happy New Year to you all.

I do not know what happends with the IJ . but the Allies get an audio alert when a search plane detects a carrier ... "Main Body!" Its annoying but does get ones attention that enemy CV's are strolling through serch arcs ...

Another night ride on Mandalay. This time i lost 24 Tojo's. CAP not fly I will remind Docup about HR of night bombing(max 2 attacks in single hex per week and 4 after 9/43) to be sure he not attack tomorrow On other AF i am sanding more planes to night duty

Mandalay is open. AF damage is in middle 30s.

I am building 7 Ki-44 daily. Loses like that using my plane pool very fast.

I only have extra news. I dont know have but when i first time was looking trough map i did not notice that enemy CV TF is on open sea between Bowen and Rockhampton.

If this was happen half year ago i will attack. Today it is to dangerous. Now we have times when Japanese CV waiting for enemy under LBA support not opposite.

Happy New Year to you all.

I do not know what happends with the IJ . but the Allies get an audio alert when a search plane detects a carrier ... "Main Body!" Its annoying but does get ones attention that enemy CV's are strolling through serch arcs ...

For Japan detecting enemy CV is no different from detecting different TF type. Usually i know that there is CV when Patrol planes are shutdown by CAP

This is limiting enough night bombings right now to lvl where allies are not able to move his bombing raid to night only, but also that HR is not perfect. After last two days of bombing Mandalay Docup will not be able to bomb at night for next 5 days reliving me from night CAP duty in that base and i can focus only on day phase

I am looking for something more balanced giving some king flexibility to time and numbers of raids. I am not want to block bombings but something that will not make them so effective

In last two days i lost 40 fighters and Mandalay AF is 30/30 damage. I can live with that for short time but few more days like that and AF will be closed without single plane flying at day. I will accept that if night figters or Flak can crate seroius danger to enemy bombers. Right now allies can bomb without any danger to own planes. Also my fighter groups have now morale ~60 with is not good for me.

Any idea about it. Maybe some kind HR change or modification. Something that allow Docup to bomb every time he want but also with limitation to effectiveness. Maybe limiting numbers of planes/air grup that can fly in single night or altitude limit??